Three Things the Most Profitable Service Businesses Do Differently

Having owned, worked-in and consulted with retail service businesses for many years, I’ve noticed some key differences between the businesses who struggle and those who seem to magically grow year after year. If your business seems stuck, take a moment to assess how you’re doing in these three areas.

1. Have a Plan: Use it. Share it. Track it.

How are you going to grow your business? The biggest mistake business owners make is not having a plan for growth. Your plan does not need to be complicated or fancy. In fact, I recommend that you use a format for your business plan that is simple and easy for you and your team to follow. We use the One Page Business Plan by Jim Horan with our clients because we find it easy to use and very effective.

Review your plan frequently and use it to set your monthly, weekly, and daily goals. Share your plan with your team and connect everyday activities and goals to your plan.

Do you want to be known as the top spa for customer service in the area? Put it in your plan with a strategy to get there.

2. Hire Smart & Often

Avoid being a prisoner to your daily operations. As the business owner, you need to focus on the big picture in order to grow. It is difficult to do this if you are constantly being pulled into working your front counter. Make hiring, training, and evaluating your team a regular part of your routine. Have a hiring system in place to ensure you always have a team member to step up when the need arrives. Conduct group interviews to meet and interact with several prospective team members at once in a fun and informative session.

3. Focus on the Customer Experience: Both Internal & External

Your frontline team members can make or break your business by the service they provide. If they aren’t happy, it will show to your customers. Your team learns from you. They will treat your customers the way you treat them. Finding different ways to say “thank you” can go a long way. Download the free ebook “The NEW Customer,” for ideas on improving your customer experience.

The Difference-maker

If you are like many business owner operators, finding the time to make these changes today can seem daunting. However, the main reason most companies never break out of the struggle is that they allow the urgent to crowd out the important day after day, week after week, and eventually, year after year.

As the owner and leader, your time must be freed from daily operations so that you have the headspace for growing your company’s profits and impact. My mission is to show you how to own your business, not let your business own you.